Congressman's property deal questioned

Rep. Ross, key figure in health care debate, sold drugstore in 2007

Video

The matter of choice in health care
Sept. 22: Rachel Maddow reviews the eyebrow-raising financial relationship Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., has with the health care industry and is then joined by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-OR, to discuss the renewed energy in the Senate in support of the public option.

The Rachel Maddow Show

Health care videos

Palin heedless in banging ‘death panel’ drum
Dec. 23: The Nation’s Chris Hayes discusses Sarah Palin’s twisting of history to justify her death panel fear mongering.

Will the public option make a comeback?

Is this the health reform Obama promised?

Obama’s role in health reform

Early-morning health vote awaits Senate

INTERACTIVE

Dose of reality
Do health care reform headlines leave you saying “huh?” Visit msnbc.com's guide to health reform and send us claims you'd like fact-checked.

updated 6:43 p.m. ET Sept. 23, 2009

PRESCOTT, Ark. - A watchdog group asked the Justice Department on Wednesday to look into the 2007 sale of a drugstore owned by a congressman who is a key figure in the national health care debate after reports he may have profited excessively from the sale.

The group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington questioned in a complaint whether the $420,000 that USA Drug paid Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., for his family-owned Holly's Health Mart in Prescott was a fair price. The deal was first reported this week by the Web site ProPublica.

Documents show that, after the sale, the Nevada County assessor valued the property at $263,700. An appraiser hired by ProPublica valued it recently at $198,000.

Story continues below ↓

advertisement | your ad here

Ross on Wednesday called the complaint a "bogus ... political stunt" and has said there was nothing improper about the sale. He said the $420,000 transaction reflected a 4 percent annual return on a $316,000 investment he made in 1998.

USA Drug owner Stephen L. LaFrance also paid Ross and Ross' wife, Holly, between $500,000 and $1 million for the pharmacy's assets and that Ms. Ross was also paid to not compete with the new owners.

'Gotcha politics'
Campaign finance reports show LaFrance also gave Ross a $2,300 campaign donation two weeks after the sale and another $500 last November.

Image: Congressman Meet With Obama To Discuss Healthcare At The White House
Mark Wilson / Getty Images file
Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., says there was nothing improper about the 2007 sale of a drugstore he owned.
USA Drug referred calls to president and CEO Joe Courtright, who did not return a telephone call left with his voice-mail system.

Ross is the chairman of the health care task force for the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats, whose support is critical for health care reform. Pharmacies have an interest in how the health care debate turns out because of its potential impact on drug prices.

In a statement, Ross accused ProPublica of engaging in "gotcha politics."

"Outside groups are trying to taint a completely legal and respected small business that my wife and I worked hard for 14 years to establish," Ross said. "The buyer did not just buy brick and mortar; he bought a successful, trusted, centrally-located and profitable pharmacy in my hometown," Ross said.